Five's A Charm
by shatteredpiecestogether
Summary: The four times Anastasia caught Will, and the one time he caught her.


_Five's a Charm _

**.**

**1. **

"Bloody hell." A tired Will Scarlet muttered, scanning his surroundings. As usual, the market was packed with loads of people, each originating from different backgrounds; some being magical and others being not. It almost caused Will physical pain to see the area so lively and filled with beings. Times such as these just caused the majority of his missons to become ten times harder.

Slowly but carefully, Will made his way over to a specific table, accidentally bumping into some people in the process. He ignored the looks of disapproval he had recieved and instead smiled at the woman who was seated in a white chair behind the designated spot. "'Ello, mate." Will greeted her, smiling widely. It was easier to get away with the deed if the victim was charmed.

"Hello yourself." The woman grinned up at him. "Are you shopping for a special someone?" She asked suggestively, pointing at the piles of jewelry that were neatly placed on the table. Will fingered a red piece and once again smiled.

"No, actually. I'm shoppin' for my mother. Y'see, she's very ill, and I was hoping to get her a gift. Kind of like..." He immediately dropped his smile and pretended to wipe a forming tear from his eye, "a partin' gift. You know?" The woman nodded sadly.

"Yes," she sympathized. "I understand where you are coming from. My own mother passed away years ago. It was a very sad event." She paused, drumming her perfect fingernails on the table. "Does your mother have a color she prefers over the others?"

"Yes, actually. She prefers violet. But," Will said, scanning the selection, "it seems that you do not have any of the sort." The lady smiled.

"Nonsense. Just stay put and I'll take a look in my wagon. I'm bound to have one there." Will grinned.

"Perfect."

Once the woman had gone, Will sprung into action, quickly shoving as many necklaces he could into his black leather pouch. He was just about to walk away from the scene when a frantic voice rang out from behind him.

"Hey!" Will turned to see a petite girl standing merely a few feet away. She was fairly short and had light blonde hair that matched almost perfectly with her piercing green eyes. Despite her young apperance, she seemed to be close to his age, perhaps some years younger. "I saw that!" She screamed, pointing a shaky finger towards him. Suddenly realizing the seriousness of the situation, Will stared at the girl as if he had no idea what she was talking about or whom she was speaking to. When she did not part her gaze from his, Will tilted his head.

"Me?" He asked, sounding fairly confused. The girl nodded and quickly walked over to him. "I've no idea what you're goin' on about." Will declared, tucking his pouch into his pocket. Lucky for him, the girl did not take notice of this act. In fact, her eyes only seemed to be trained on his face. "What are ya doing?"

"You're lying." The girl concluded, crossing her arms across her chest. Will shook his head.

"I'm not. I swear." When she still did not seem convinced, Will shrugged his shoulders. "I solemnly swear?" The girl stayed put. "Come on, what do ya want me to do?" He asked finally, crossing his arms as to mimic her actions.

"I want you to put the stolen jewelry back onto the table." She responded, her gaze turning into a glare. "Now." Will sighed.

"Fine." He gave in, spilling the contents from his pouch onto the table. "Are ya happy now?"

"Yes." The girl nodded. After she made sure not a single necklace was left in his possession, she walked away from Will, grinning to herself.

"Joke's on her, then." Will laughed to himself, putting the jewelry back into his pouch. He grinned.

There was nothing he loved more than a soild victory, and a loser thinking they were the opposite of that.

**.**

**.**

**2. **

It was once again packed, without surprise on Will's part. This time, however, he did not mind in the least bit. This time, the floods of people and clusters of familes made his job all the more easier.

The puppet show was awful, that was for certain. Will winced everytime a puppet spoke, as the acting was tremendously horrendous, even though it was solely through voice. He was not there for the show of course, but that did not mean that he was not forced to watch it every few minutes so he would appear innocent.

The wind gusted and swirled above the crowd, hitting the trees with great force. Leaves flew loudly and it was almost as if they were following eachother, one leaf by one. At least the endless amounts of leaves gave him a plausible excuse to share after he had bumped into many pedestrians.

Casually, Will strolled over to a larger man. It was a well known fact that larger men possessed more riches, as they could afford luxurious foods and were able to eat whenever they felt like doing so. Acting quickly Will unhooked the man's pouch from his belt and walked away, his eyes trained on the puppet show. As the show finally came to an end, Will felt someone tap him on the shoulder. He jumped, almost losing the pouch in the process. "Bloody hell!" He shrieked once he saw who was responsible for his scare. It was the girl. The exact same one that had caught him the time prior.

"I saw you take that." She stated calmly. Her hands we placed on her hips in an attempt to look threatening.

"So?" Will shrugged, not bothering to deny it. "What's done is done. I don't even know the name of the person I took the money from. There's no goin' back now." The girl huffed.

"I'll have you know that I could very well get you arrested for your crimes." She replied, biting on her lower lip. That action seemed to calm her nerves, making her have a more bold and confident aura.

"Ya could," Will agreed. "But ya won't." The girl stared at him with confusion.

"What makes ya think that?" Her posture had changed, as she was now fiddling with her hands and her eyes were now looking downward.

"Ya don't have it in ya." Will told her. "Just like I don't have it in me to threaten ya in case you would go and tattle. You're all talk."

"I am not!" She snapped, stomping her foot. Dirt rose up from the ground and landed square on the girl's face. Not being able to contain himself, Will laughed. "It's not funny!" The girl shrieked while brushing the dirt off of her face. It was no use however, as the dirt had fallen and began to stain her pink dress aswell.

"Here take this." Will offered. He held out a small cloth that once held a piece of bread he had brought with him for a light lunch. "It'll help with the dirt." The girl took the cloth reluctantly.

"Why are you giving this to me?" She questioned. "I was going to have you arrested." Will smiled.

"I guess I'm not as heartless as ya think, then." He replied. The girl nodded.

"I guess not." She said. They looked at eachother a while longer, when the girl suddenly began to walk away.

"Wait!" Will yelled, stopping her in her tracks. "Will."

"What?" She yelled back, making sure that he was able to hear her.

"My name," he gestured to himself. "It's Will. Will Scarlet." The girl bit her lip once more before responding.

"Anastasia." _Anastasia. _Will replayed the name in his mind. It was undoubtedly one of the most beautiful names he had ever heard. "Will?" Anastasia spoke once again.

"Yeah?" She smiled and pointed towards the stolen pouch.

"You know who ya took that from. Return it." Will grinned back and shook his head.

"Not a chance." He lied. There was a chance, a slim one. Not that he would ever inform Anastasia of this information.

**.**

**.**

**.**

**3.**

The day was quite cold. Will had to wrap a pink, itchy blanket around himself just so he could remain considerably warm. His teeth however, continued to chatter, but he ignored them. This task was extremely difficult and he could not afford to get distracted so easily. This task was much different than the former ones. This task required him to physically break into a home, rather than just pickpocketing or the fine art of distraction.

"Will!" One of his friends whispered harshly, walking closer to him. "Are you going to sit there all day or get the bloody guts to go in?" Will sighed.

"I'm goin' Andrew. Just tryin' to get warm here," he told him, holding up his pink blanket. Andrew stiffled laugh.

"Ya know, they've got a mighty warm fire goin' on in there." Andrew explained to Will, pointing towards the targeted house. "Them Tremaine's, they're rich. Rich enough to get invited to that ball the prince is hosting tomorrow."

"Alright. But there's no doubt they'll see me if I go in. How'll I sneak around 'em?"

"They're getting ready to leave for the castle. It's a days journey at most," Andrew told him. "They should be leaving any second." After he had spoken, the duo saw the three ladies file out of their house one by one. "That's Lady Tremaine. " Andrew explained, gesturing towards the taller woman at the front of the line. "She's got a stick up her...Well you know." Will nodded, grinning. He throughly enjoyed Andrew's company.

"And who's that?" He questioned. "The second one." Andrew shuddered.

"Drizella Tremaine. The oldest daughter. Very..." He paused for a moment, "unpleasant. Not just to the eye, mind you." Will laughed.

"And the last one?" This time, his friend smiled. Unable to comprehend his friend's sudden change in demeanor, Will squinted to get a closer look at the second Tremaine sister. He was not able to make out much, besides the fact that her hair seemed to be a pale blonde in color, due to her back being turned away from him. However, just as Andrew began to speak, the girl turned around, locking eyes with none other than Will himself.

"That one is-"

"Anastasia." Will cut his friend off absentmindedly. Andrew nodded.

"Seems like you've been doin' your research." He nudged him in the side. "She's feisty, that one. But she also has a sweet side, and- hey," both Will and Andrew's eyes became squinted, "she's comin' this way!" Andrew stood up in alarm, but Will remained seated. "Come on," Andrew urged, "we've got to run!" Without waiting another second, he ran, leaving Will behind. He did not mind, to be honest he enjoyed his little run-ins with the girl.

"What on earth are you doing?!" Anastasia shrieked as she approached Will. "Are you mad?!" Will shrugged.

"I suppose so." He stood up, eyeing the carriage that was supposed to be taking her and her family to the royal ball at the very moment. Anastasia caught his eye and sighed.

"I told my mother I had forgotten my necklace in my room." She explained. Will nodded and the conversation was filled with silence. "My mother would have caught you." Anastasia said confidently, breaking the silence. "Trying to rob my home. What were ya thinkin'?"

"Your family is known for being rich. I was thinkin' that I could break in, take some money and get out." He did not miss the hurt look that etched itself across Anastasia's face. "I didn't know this was your place." Will explained. Truly, it was not nessasary to explain, but for some odd reason Will believed he was obligated to.

"Why do ya need to steal?" Anastasia questioned him in a quiet voice. "Judging by the amount of supplies you've got here, you must have a fair amount of money. Unless," she said, scoffing, "you stole those supplies too." Will furiously shook his head.

"No I... I don't steal for me, ya see. I'm part of a group. We call ourselves the merry men. We steal, yes, but it's for good." Once Will could sense Anastasia's confusion, he continued. "We steal from the rich and give to the poor." Before she could say anything, Anastasia's mother called out from inside of the carriage.

"Anastasia! What on earth are you doing out there ?!" Her voice was filled to the brim with anger, and Will had to stop himself from yelling something back to the woman himself. Anastasia on the other hand, without saying a word to neither Will nor her mother, left quickly, her shoes forming prints in the mud behind her.

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**4. **

"Anastasia! What is taking you so long?!" Her mother shouted as they walked through the palace courtyard. It was a bright sunny day, and her mother had told Anastasia and her sister specifically to hurry, for they did not want to arrive to the ball all sweaty and disgusting. "Remember, this is you girl's chance to marry into royalty! Do not mess this up." She'd reminded them daily.

"I'm coming, mother!" Anastasia promised, purposely walking behind her family. They were both acting incredibly obnoxious, and if Anastasia heard one more word fly out of either of their mouths she's sure she would burst.

Now attempting to catch up to the duo, she jogged slightly. Her dress flew up from behind and her hair became messy, but this complication was not what stopped her in her tracks. No, it was a wanted poster she saw that halted her.

'Wanted: Will Scarlet' Was what the poster had read. Underneath those three words was a hastily drawn picture of Will and reasons as to why he was wanted, which Anastasia hadn't bothered to read. She did laugh slightly, however, at how poorly drawn Will's nose was. It did not suit his face in the least bit and with that nose drawn on, you could hardly recognize his face. Nonetheless, Anastasia tore the poster down and shoved it into her pocket.

"Caught you." She muttered before running to approach her mother.

**1.**

The day was quite unlike the others, for small raindrops floaded the town of Sherwood that late afternoon. Will grudgingly wiped droplets off of his jacket whilst cursing quietly under his breath. He hated the rain; almost as much as it hated him.

His week had not been the best for a few reasons. He had not been stealing as much as he had used to, and his friend Robin had become quite upset with that outcome. Will had also been skipping out on loots, and he was frequently found sitting alone on his bed, looking as if he carried the weight of the world on his shoulders.

Truth be told, there was really only one main reason why he had been having an off week.

Anastasia.

Will had not seen her for some time, and he was truly beginning to miss their little conversations they shared. He wondered if she was thinking about him as he her, or if he was simply being delirious. Surely she could not have forgotten him. He had to have some importance to her, correct?

"Scarlet," Andrew waved his hands in front of Will's face, interrupting his train of thought. "Did ya hear?"

"Hear what?" Asked Will. He was just as curious as he was annoyed.

"The prince is marrying one of them Tremaine sisters!" Andrew exclaimed, waving his hands in the air. "That ball did just as much good to them as it did to us, if ya know what I mean."

Will suddenly felt as though he had gotten hit by a million bricks, each one hurting much more than the last. "Do... Do you know which one?" He asked trying to sound casual. Will however, already knew the answer. It was Anastasia; it had to be. Who in their right mind would choose Drizella over her?

"I didn't catch 'er name, but I think she's blonde." Came Andrew's reply. "Anyway, are ya comin' over to Robin's tonight? I heard he's havin' a bonfire at his place." He said, hastily changing the subject. Will shook his head.

"No. I think I'm just goin' to go out in the rain for a while. Clear my head, ya know?"

He was gone before his friend had the chance to ask why.

As he walked, Will found himself often wishing that he had just stayed with Andrew in some place dry. A place where he did not have to ring out his jacket every two minutes would suit him well, especially if he was able to see, for a simple thing like that was proving to be incredibly difficult indeed.

Attempting to prevent the water from blurring his vision, Will placed his hands on his forehead. He squinted his eyes as he tried to take a closer look at his surroundings. Finding someplace to dry off was proving to be excessively challenging, and Will was beginning to think that he would remain forever wet when he caught sight of a shop nearby. It was very small and old looking, in fact it did not quite resemble a shop at all. Will however, could hardly care less at that current moment, and made his way into the suspicious little store.

"Afternoon." A man greeted Will as he entered. "Anything I can help you with today?"

"No." Will shook his head. "I'm just lookin', thanks." The man nodded.

"Any time."

As he made his way around, Will began to notice how truly unique and odd the shop truly was. The endless amount of dusty shelves held potions and remedies of every kind imaginable and if Will had not been soaked to the very bone, he would have believed that this shop was a mere figment of his wild imagination. He treaded slowly, making sure to touch every bottle he passed. He did not wish to abandon the shop anytime soon.

"If you're interested in those, look in aisle three. I think I have something for you." The man from behind the counter called out to him. He followed his words with a wink, and although Will had no knowledge of the potion he was currently admiring, he did as the man requested.

Once Will entered the third aisle, he could plainly see that it was certainly the most popular of them all. Many of the shelves were empty, with only a few sparkling pink bottles to brighten them up. What was in the bottle was something Will had no knowledge of, but it sure was alluring. Will found that his eyes were glued to the bottles. And apparently, so were another pair.

A woman was standing in front of him, clutching a petite pink bottle in her hand. Very slowly while starring at the shop owner intently, she placed the bottle in her pocket. It was plainly obvious to Will that it was this woman's first time committing a crime such as theft. A professional could always recognize a first-timer.

"Excuse me, Miss, but don't ya think that you should pay for that?" He did not know if it was how nice the owner looked or the fact that he was feeling as if he had a larger sense of morality at that moment, but Will could not bear to see someone steal from the little shop that he sought dryness in not so long ago.

The woman turned around and placed the bottle back onto the shelf. "A bit hypocritical, don't you think?" The sadness in her voice was evident, but Will thought then and there that he was one of the happiest men alive.

"Anastasia." He breathed. His face lit up instantly. "Why... Why are you here? I thought you were marrying-"

"The prince?" Anastasia cut him off. Will nodded. "If I were, why on earth would I need that?" She gestured towards the potion that had once resided in her pocket. Will shrugged. Before he could ask what she meant, Anastasia continued. "It's a love potion. The prince... He didn't pick me. He chose my stepsister Ella instead. My mum is furious, not to mention extremely disappointed with me. I figured that if I could somehow slip the potion into the prince's drink while his back was turned and I was standing near him then..."

"...He'd fall in love with you." Will finished dryly. Anastasia nodded and tears fell silently down her face.

"I just wanted her to be proud of me for once." She sobbed whilst clutching onto her dress. "It's stupid, I know."

"No," Will disagreed, "It's not, really. I... Do you love him?" The question came out so quickly that he barely had time to register what he had asked before Anastasia was answering it.

"No. I don't, really. It's just... My mother never believed in love. She says it's distracting, that it removes us from the path we were meant to tread on and places us onto a completely new one. If I married for love, well... She would not approve." Her eyes remained wet as she spoke, and Will could not help from being captivated by them.

"I get it, I guess. But... isn't the path we are meant to take supposed to be a happy one?" Will questioned curiously. "I mean, how will ya be happy if you're not with the one ya love?" Anastasia looked downward.

"I guess I won't be."

Will smiled.

"Now, there's no way I'm gonna let that happen."

;;

The sun was shining brightly, and Will thought that he would never be in a better mood than he was that day. Not worrying about being seen, he made his way over to a different girl than the one before (thank God) who was patiently seated behind the same bejeweled table. "Hello." She welcomed him kindly. "Looking for anything?" Will nodded.

"A red necklace, please." The girl grinned.

"Shopping for a special someone?" This time Will grinned back.

"Yes," he confirmed while pulling a handfull of coins from his pouch and placing them in front of the girl. "I am."

;;

**FIN**

**A/N: I'm finally finished yayyy! Okay so a quick note; Will was a part of the Merry Men when this takes place. Kay? Kay.**

**Review? :D **


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